Down
by nemmert98
Summary: Life after Paradise Falls has been great for Carl and Russell. However, what goes up, must come down. Carl and Russell's lives are about to change forever.


UP

Carl had been dreading this day for seven years. Russell was moving away to college. Although he would only be a few hours away, Carl dreaded the quiet, lonely days that would surely come. Since their trip to Paradise Falls, Russell had come over to see Carl almost every day. Carl, now ninety-eight years old, wasn't sure what he would do without Russell there to help him around the house and keep him company.

Carl heard knocking on the front door. He slowly eased up out of his recliner and shuffled to the door. He took a deep breath, swallowed the lump in his throat, and then opened the door. Russell was there in front of him, wearing an Arizona State University t-shirt. His car was parked in the driveway, and Carl could see that it was already packed and ready for Russell's move.

"Hey Mr. Fredricksen," Russell said. Carl could see Russell's eyes well up with tears. This was Russell's last, and hardest, goodbye.

"Aw Russell. Don't be upset. You'll be back to visit when you can. In the meantime, be safe, study hard, and enjoy your time. You're gonna make a great doctor," Carl smiled, and so did Russell.

"I'll be back as soon as I can. Take care of yourself Carl." Russell stepped forward and gave Carl a hug. "Thank you for everything."

"See ya soon kid," Carl said as Russell turned to leave. Carl stood in the doorway and watched until Russell had driven around the corner, and out of sight. As he closed the door, a single tear fell down his cheek.

A few days after Russell left for college, Carl decided to mail him a care package. Inside was an album full of pictures of their time together since Paradise Falls, a few of Russell's favorite candy bars, and a short, handwritten note from Carl. The post office was only a few blocks away so Carl decided to walk there. He stopped by the front door to put on a sweater. As always, Carl never left the house without a bowtie. He grabbed a blue striped bowtie, looked in the mirror, and then hesitated. He looked at the material, then he looked at his hands. For the first time in his life, Carl could not remember how to tie a bowtie.

As the weeks passed, Carl noticed more odd things. Simple tasks were becoming increasingly difficult. During one trip to the store, he could not remember which brand of coffee he liked. As he stared at the display, he wondered how he could forget this. He had been drinking the same coffee for over seventy years. At home, he struggled to remember if he had locked the door or not, and would get up several times in the night to check. Once, he put food in the oven to heat up and sat down in the living room to wait while he watched tv. Thirty minutes later he noticed the black smoke creeping into the room. He rushed to the oven and yanked out the food that was completely burnt to a crisp. Carl stared at the food in amazement. He did not know how it could have gotten into the oven.

After two months of being gone, Russell was finally able to come home to visit Carl for a few days. As soon as he pulled onto Carl's street, he knew that something was wrong. He could see that Carl's mailbox was overflowing, and the yard was a mess. Carl had stopped doing yardwork several years ago, but would pay his neighbor to keep it looking tidy and sharp.

Russell grabbed the mail and made his way to the door. When Carl opened the door, Russell's eyes widened. Carl, who was always clean shaven and well dressed, was still in his pajamas and looked like he had not shaved in about a week.

"Mr. Fredricksen, are you okay?" Russell asked. Carl stared at him in confusion for several seconds, then he smiled, as if he had just remembered who Russell was.

"Oh! Hi Russell. Yeah, I'm doing fine. Come on in," Carl stepped back, and Russell could see the usually spotless house was getting cluttered and messy.

Russell stayed for lunch, and talked with Carl. He seemed to be his usual self, joking, laughing, and telling stories. However, there was something off. He noticed when Carl asked him three times what kind of sandwich he wanted. He also noticed when Carl got up twice to make sure that the door was locked. Russell was worried, and by the time he left later that night, he had convinced Carl to go visit a doctor later that week.

Carl and Russel were waiting anxiously in the lobby of the doctor's office. After running several tests, the doctor was certain of his diagnosis. After twenty minutes of waiting in silence, Russell and Carl were called into the doctor's personal office.

"Carl, after assessing your symptoms and analyzing these tests… How do I say this? Carl, you have Alzheimer's Disease."

One week after his visit to the doctor, Carl moved into Shady Oaks Retirement Home and Assisted Living Facility. Russell had stayed with him as long as he could to help him pack his things and fill out the paperwork, but eventually he had to go back to school. Carl assured him that he would be fine, but Russell was not so sure. His mental health was declining quickly, and Russell was afraid that Carl would forget who he was while he was gone.

Months passed. Russell came back to visit as often as he could, but it was getting harder to get away from school. Carl's health and memory were still declining, and by January he was no longer able to walk. Carl was a proud person, and struggled to look Russell in the eye when he was sitting in his wheelchair. He was able to feed himself, but now needed assistance with bathing and using the toilet. Bit by bit, he was forgetting his whole life. He did not immediately recognize Russell anymore. Some days, Russell would have to frequently remind Carl who he was. Other days, Carl seemed to do better and could recall some memories of their seven years together. The nurses warned Russell that Carl was not going to get better, and that he probably did not have another year left in him. Russell understood, and spent as much time with Carl as possible.

Russell was jolted awake when his phone started ringing. He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and looked at the clock for the time. 2:31 am. When he saw the number, his heart skipped a beat. It was the nursing home where Carl was at. Russell pressed accept and held the phone up to his ear, hand shaking.

"Hello?" he said.

"Hello, this is Beverly, a nurse at Shady Oaks Retirement Home. I am calling regarding a Mr. Carl Fredricksen." Russell fought back tears. He feared that Carl had passed away before he was able to say goodbye.

"Yes?" Russell said.

"I apologize for calling at this time, but I thought you would want to know. He's not doing well… You might want to come and say goodbye."

"I'll be there as soon as I can," Russell said. Fifteen minutes later, Russell was on the road, heading back to Carl.

It was seven o'clock when Russell pulled into the Shady Oaks parking lot. He silently prayed that Carl was still there. He quickly walked through the doors, and made his way straight to Carl's room. Carl was lying in bed, his face an ashy yellow and gray color. He was breathing, slow, shallow, rattling breaths. Russell sat in the chair next to his bed and reached for his hand. Russell had never been in the presence of someone that was dying before. It was not as peaceful as the stories he had heard. With each breath that Carl took, Russell could hear gurgling of liquid deep in his throat. There was nothing that the nurses could do about that. Carl's hand was cold and leathery feeling. Russell sat there for an hour, talking, crying, and watching over Carl. He thanked him for everything that he had done for him, and told him that he would miss him. Carl did not give any signs that he knew that Russell was there, but that didn't stop Russell. About an hour after he had gotten there, a nurse came in with an eye dropper and a stethoscope. She looked at Russell with a sad expression and gave him a small smile.

"This is just some morphine. I'm going to put it under his tongue. It helps with the pain," she said. Russell watched as she carefully dripped the morphine into Carl's mouth. Then she listened to his lungs for several seconds. When she was done, she left quickly and without a word.

Russell sat there for hours. He decided that when Carl died, he wanted him to be thinking of something beautiful. He carefully described Paradise Falls and their adventure there. He told him about Doug the dog, and Kevin the bird. He recalled every memory in as much detail as he could remember.

Russell noticed that Carl's breathing had started to slow. He knew this was it. He fought back the tears and told Carl one last story. He told Carl about his wife Ellie and their long, happy life together. When he was done, he heard the breath leave Carl's lips for the last time.


End file.
